In the last three emails, we presented a brief summary of three different academic studies related to the impact exposure to adult, non-sexual nudity has on children. All suggest the clothing compulsion accepted by our society is, at the very least, benign; at the worst, it is harmful to children and their social development.

This week we study what may be the most useful resource for nudist families. Story (1979) interviewed 264 three- to five-year-old children and their parents. These subjects were chosen and matched based on family nudity status: “social nudist,” “at-home-only nudist,” or non-nudist. Subjects were all North Americans, with approximately equal numbers sampled from all geographic regions in the United States. 

Parents were given individually administered interviews to determine the children’s ages, genders, weights, and birth order. The children were interviewed separately; they were asked to tell whether they liked certain body parts, using as references line drawings of nude children of the same sex and race as the child being interviewed. The children were also asked to identify the most- and least-liked body parts, with an explanation for each.

Story’s findings were eye-opening. While non-nudist children most often disliked their genitals, nudist children were the opposite, most often naming the genitals as the most-liked body part. In addition, nudist children did not identify any particular body parts they disliked (the only possible exception being the skin—not because of racial coloration or deformity, but because of sunburn or too little tan). 

Family nudism was found to have a higher correlation to body self-concept than did sex, race, or geographical area. Nudist children consistently scored higher than non-nudist children in all areas of body acceptance, self-concept, and self-image.